


The Truth and a Sidebraid

by aflawedfashion



Category: Defiance (TV)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Light Angst, Season 2
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-26
Updated: 2020-04-26
Packaged: 2021-03-02 07:15:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,167
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23847295
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aflawedfashion/pseuds/aflawedfashion
Summary: As Amanda prepares for Kenya's eulogy with her arm in a cast, Nolan helps her get ready.---“I really do know how to braid hair.”“Doesn’t seem like something they’d teach you in military training.”“There are many possible ways I could have learned this skill. I could have learned from my sister, my daughter, or an ex-girlfriend who also had a thing for braids.”
Relationships: Joshua Nolan/Amanda Rosewater
Kudos: 4





	The Truth and a Sidebraid

Morning should have been the easiest time in Amanda’s day, the time she relaxed while preparing for upcoming challenges. But with her aching arm constrained by a cast and her sister’s eulogy to give, she was ready for the day to be over before it began. She’d already been defeated by the simple task of doing her makeup, failing to finish her hair.

Amanda groaned in frustration, her hands falling uselessly to her lap and her hair falling limply against her shoulder. She looked into the mirror, taking comfort in her flawless makeup. At least she had done something right.

“Need help?” Nolan asked from behind her.

“Shit.” Amanda turned and covered her face in embarrassment. “How long have you been standing there.” 

“Not long. Don’t worry.” He smiled sympathetically. “I don’t get my jollies by watching you struggle. I just came to make sure you were ok… I mean, I know you’re not ok, but I guess I just thought I should ask or be here or something. I needed to do something.”

“Thank you.” She smiled her gratitude. “But I was  _ not _ struggling.” 

“No?” he asked with a raised eyebrow.

“No,” she stated firmly.

“Uh huh, well, if you ever do find yourself struggling, it’s ok to admit you need help.” Nolan knelt beside her, resting one hand on her knee and the other on the back of her chair. “I’m here for you.”

As mayor of Defiance, Amanda had seen many sides to Nolan, her lawkeeper, the man whose strength she depended on to keep her town safe. But she hadn’t truly understood just how soft he could be until she lost her job, lost her sister, and completely fell apart in front of him. Lately, when he looked at her, he shared his sadness, his worry, his love. It was a look that made her heart ache and think that maybe, just maybe, she was a fool for letting him go. She knew she needed time to recover from her addictions and her trauma before attempting a real relationship, but when he looked at her like that, it was hard not to kiss him.

“You don’t need to be perfect all the time,” Nolan added.

“Maybe not all the time.” Amanda returned to her reflection. “But today I do.”

“No, you don’t.”

“What I don’t need is an arument, not with you.”

“I’m not arguing. I’m just telling the truth.”

“The truth? You want the truth?”

“Always.” 

“The truth is that I’m a fucking mess who can’t decide if she’d rather cry or punch something, but my arm is killing me, and I’d ruin my makeup if cried, so I can’t do either of those things. But more than anything else, I  _ need _ those people downstairs to see me as a strong person who can handle her emotions without crying or punching anything.”

“No one expects that from you.” 

“You know how I live to defy expectations.”

“And I love that about you.” Nolan stroked her knee with his thumb, his words soft. “But maybe the bright spot in losing your job is that you can finally live for yourself, not giving a shtak what anyone else thinks of you.”

“I can’t do that.” Amanda shook her head, growing nervous to say something she’d never said out loud before. “I’m not done being mayor.”

“What?”

“I’m going to run again.” She gave Nolan a cautiously optimistic smile. “As I thought about Kenya taking the NeedWant back, I was set free, and I realized exactly what I needed to do. I don’t belong here.”

“No you don’t.” He gave her a broad smile, the worry and pity gone from his gaze, only the love remained. “You belong behind that desk in that ridiculously large office.”

“And now that I’ve had my epiphany, all that’s left is to overthrow the E-Rep.”

“Oh,” Nolan waved his hand dismissively. “Piece of cake.”

“So you’ll help?”

“Anything you need, I’m yours,” he said. “And thank you.” 

“For what?”

“For not pretending in front of me the way you pretend in front of everyone else.” 

“I suppose we’re beyond that now.” Amanda shook her head, a soft chuckle escaping her lips. “You’ve seen the worst moments of my life.”

“Mmm.” Nolan sighed, gathering her hair in his hands as a distraction. “You scared me. More than once.”

“I scared myself.” Amanda furrowed her brow, noticing Nolan was doing more than absentmindedly playing with her hair. “Are you braiding my hair?”

“If anyone asks, you can tell them you did it yourself.”

“I didn’t know you could braid hair.”

“Of course,” Nolan said as he began dividing her hair into three uneven sections, starting the braid far too low. “Have a little faith in me.”

“Nolan…” She furrowed her brow at his disastrous attempt. “What is that?”

“A braid.” 

“If you were a small child.” She swatted his hands away. “Don’t make this worse. I can wear it loose.”

“I’m kidding.” He ran his fingers through her hair, smoothing it and dividing it into perfect sections. “I really do know how to braid hair.”

She rolled her eyes at his deception. “Doesn’t seem like something they’d teach you in military training.”

“There are many possible ways I could have learned this skill. I could have learned from my sister, my daughter, or an ex-girlfriend who also had a thing for braids.”

She glared into his eyes, and he laughed.

“Did I not tell you that’s really all I look for in a woman? I have a type. A fetish that you fit. That’s all I ever cared about.”

“Oh, shut up.” She knocked her shoulder into his hands, her braid coming undone.

“Fine.” He regathered her hair. “You want my truth?”

“No, lie to me,” she joked. “Of course I want the truth.”

“Well, it’s not sexy or exciting. My sister taught me. She used to make me braid her hair when I was a kid. And her doll’s hair.” He grimaced as he tied the end of her braid. “That last bit of information is strictly our secret, I’ve never told that to anyone, not even Irisa.” 

“That’s sweet.”

“Yes, and I want people to describe me as sweet about as much as you want to be described as someone who can’t braid her own hair. So let’s agree to keep these secrets.”

“Deal,” she said. “Our reputations are secure.”

“Good, because everyone knows that’s the only thing that truly matters.” He spoke through a playful smile that quickly faded as they both realized what came next. With a deep breath and a single nod, Nolan asked, “You ready?”

“As I’ll ever be.” She looked into his eyes. “Hey, when this is all over, will you have a drink with me? I don’t want to spend the night alone crying over Kenya.”

“Absolutely,” Nolan said. “We can distract ourselves by planning our attack on the E-Rep.”

“That might take more than one drink.”

“Ok, so we’ll have two drinks.”


End file.
